State-run power utility MSEDCL plans to set up 500 electric vehicle charging stations across Maharashtra to encourage use of green energy by automobiles, an official said Thursday.

In the first phase of the project, 50 such stations will soon come up in Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Panvel (four each) Thane (six), Pune, Nagpur (10 each) and Mumbai-Pune Expressway (12), the Maharashtra Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL) said in a release.

The plan is to set up a total of 500 charging stations at key locations in the state in the next three to four years for those travelling by electric cars, bikes or scooters, a spokesperson of the MSEDCL said.

The e-tendering process for the project is in the last phase and the work order will be given within a week, the release said.

Each electric vehicle charging station will be set up at a cost of around Rs 2.5 lakh, it said.

The MSEDCL plans to set up these charging points at its free/empty substation spaces.

A vehicle would be charged completely in about 45 minutes to one hour at these points, the release said, adding that the tariff has been fixed at Rs 6 per unit.